Translated from Utsudo’s original Chinese column.

Are there creator meetups in southern Taiwan?Relatively few. After attending a doujin creators’ sharing session in Taipei at the end of 2020, Utsudo envied the many chances northern creators have to connect, and decided to try hosting a creators’ gathering in Kaohsiung — starting with afternoon tea among a few creators, and switching to an online livestream gathering due to pandemic precautions.

Attending a doujin creators’ sharing session in Taipei

　　At the end of October 2020, at a friend’s invitation, I attended a doujin-related sharing session in Taipei. The speaker was a creator very experienced at running booths at doujin events, who had even traveled to Japan several times to exhibit.

　　He shared some thoughts and directions on doujin creation, along with personal experience and advice, and opened the floor to questions.

　　Although I didn’t raise my hand, I picked up some things from the exchanges between the speaker and the audience, which was pretty interesting. I also found the room was full of hidden talent — lots of impressive illustrators and novelists — and really wanted to get to know them XD

The struggle for southern creators to connect

　　Since I live in Pingtung, there are fewer creator sharing events in the south, and a trip north isn’t cheap, so I usually don’t go unless I have to. But once I do, I pack those few days full. Barring surprises, I basically only go north once a year QQ

　　During the break and at the end, I chatted briefly with a few creators. Unfortunately time was short and we couldn’t talk longer, but even that small contact made me happy.

　　Creators in the north surely feel less lonely, with so many fellow creative lovers around. I’m so envious.

　　I wonder if there are creator gatherings in the south? If so, I’d love to join!

Wanting to host a creators’ gathering myself

　　A writer once suggested I could host a gathering myself, but I wonder how many people would come? And I have no experience with the preparations — I don’t know if I could pull it off…

　　Frankly, I used to be pretty low-key and never imagined I’d want to host an event someday. But after talking with friends, I realized it might not be as complicated as I thought — I could treat it like meeting up with a few friends to chat.

　　If we could gather people who love creating —whether those already with some achievements in the industry, those who want to join the ranks of creators, or fans and readers who just want to see what it’s like — if we all came together and exchanged ideas, might it spark something?

　　Just imagining it is so fun XDD

　　If I have some time in the coming years, I’d like to try hosting one~

　　So should I hurry up and make some creator friends in the south now (gasp

　　But if the numbers are small, a cozy little tea party sounds great too. I think I’ll first invite a few creators I know for afternoon tea to discuss ideas; maybe a better approach will spark from that, and I’ll share it with everyone then.

　　The first one will probably be held inKaohsiung— it has the MRT, which is convenient, and lots of cafés and tea spots to choose from.

　　May I timidly ask — would any of you be interested?

　　Creators of any kind, readers, or anyone interested in joining all count XD

　　In response to pandemic prevention, and for creators far away overseas, it will probably become an online livestream gathering. I’ll invite a few creators to be on stage, and others are welcome to ask questions below~

FAQ

Further reading (in Chinese)

• Previous: #68 (in Chinese)
• Next: #70 (in Chinese)
• Start from the beginning: #01 — Utsudo’s debut
• Column introduction
• Utsudo’s books

About the author

Utsudo is a Taiwanese light novelist and novelist VTuber with more than ten years in the industry and 40 commercially published print books. Her novel 《遺失的情書》 received a 2022 Ministry of Culture youth creative award. The 《嘿！聽說妳在鬼島當作家》 series records her experiences as a novelist in Taiwan.